For the past fifteen years or so, it seems like every carmaker’s tried to become a mobility company. Car-sharing exercises that haven’t worked, subscription services that people don’t want to pay for, autonomy timelines that keep getting readjusted. Want to be a real mobility company? Build a feasible transportation device that isn’t a car. Toyota is no stranger to this approach. It’s made the tiny C+Pod low-speed vehicle, the C+Walk S mobility scooter, and now it’s looking to get outdoorsy. This little thing is called the Land Hopper, and it’s joyously unusual.
Last year, Toyota unveiled the Land Cruiser FJ, a budget-friendly compact body-on-frame Land Cruiser for … well, probably not us. Not with a diesel engine at launch, at least. However, Toyota also unveiled something called the Land Hopper Concept, a micromobility device that the marque claims is designed for running on dirt. As Toyota described it, the Land Hopper Concept “Allows users to experience the joy of off-road riding on trails (primarily unpaved paths in mountains and forests), going beyond where the Land Cruiser can take them, expanding the pleasures of travel beyond everyday use to touring at travel destinations through its ability to be stored in a vehicle’s luggage area.”
At the time, it looked like a flight of fancy, a conceptual project that probably didn’t make sense to mass produce. Besides, the Land Cruiser FJ stole the show. However, Toyota announced this week that the Land Hopper is actually headed to production next Spring, so let’s take a closer look at this unusual little machine.
You can’t really call the Land Hopper a bike because it actually has three wheels, two chain-driven ones at the front and one at the back. The rear wheel features full swing-arm suspension with a spring and damper, and you get disc brakes on both axles. It’s a big step up from say, solid rubber wheels and no suspension, but mild off-road ability and a brace of lights isn’t the Land Hopper’s party piece.
That’s because the Toyota Land Hopper folds. The handlebars drop down, the entire swing arm assembly pivots forward, and the seat can be removed so that this electric trike becomes a trunk item of sorts. Thanks to such compact storage, I can already imagine this thing as a pit bike for racing crews, or as a last-mile thing from the train to your office. In fact, it’s not the only electric scooter-like thing from a Japanese carmaker to operate in this way.
Some 45 years ago, electric scooters weren’t really a thing, so Honda built a tiny fold-up 49 cc gasoline scooter designed to fit in the trunk of its City II hatchback. The original Motocompo was an undeniable hit, so when the marque announced a spiritual successor nearly three years ago, the hype was absolutely enormous. With no suspension, a top speed of 15 MPH, and a range of just 12 miles, the Motocompacto is a far more spartan machine than the Land Hopper. It’s also reasonably cheap, with an MSRP of $995. It’s an absolute blast to ride and folds up into a package slightly larger than a carry-on, but I couldn’t imagine taking it further off-road than a cobbled walkway.
While there’s still no word on pricing or performance of the Toyota Land Hopper, I’m keeping an eye on it. At the minimum, it’s going to be a properly cool period-correct accessory in a few decades’ time. Best-case, I’d love to take one for a rip. Come on, Toyota. Bring them across the Pacific.
Top graphic image: Toyota
I’ve got a glorified Jeep trail down to my campsite, and some nice paths that this would be a blast on! Bring it on. Bonus points if it will fit into my RV.
Would make a nice friend for my motocompacto!
I love the utilitarian, aerospace-like “NASA-punk” style. Reminds of the vehicles you see in games like Starfield and shows like “For All Mankind”.
I’d rock it, though the lack of pedals puts into a legally gray area for the US market since it’s not technically an ebike.
Maybe a nicely manicured bike path, but with those tiny wheels and that geometry, I don’t see it doing too much else.